The One Who Ran Away

Chapter Eighteen

Someone tapped Jo on the shoulder, pulling her attention away from her best friend's new costume. She was wearing a 50s style housewife dress. It was white with pink embroidered flowers and leaves. She looked like a doll.

Jo turned and her eyes connected with a pair of unassuming brown ones. He smiled at her and his eyes lit up.

"Hey, Tiger. Will you be my 'roarin' date to the dance?" He held up a tiger mask and growled like a tiger would.

Jo stared at him for a moment before cracking a smile and chuckling. On her shoulder, Ricky was giggling so hard Jo almost dropped him.

"Luke, you are a riot. I told you, I'm not going."

"You told Frankie that if someone asked you, you'd go. So here I am. Asking you to be my date to the dance. Will you?" His eyes glinted mischievously as he waited for her answer. His smile never wavered.

Jo groaned. "I did say that didn't I? Well, I can't refuse such a heartfelt way to ask a girl to a dance, can I? Yeah, I'll go with you."

Cheers and cat calls sounded over her shoulder. Spook whistled loud enough to make Jo's ears ring. Scarlett was fist pumping saying she "just knew it!" Jo ignored them.

"So, what are we going as?" Jo asked her new date. Luke grinned even wider.

"Oh no," Jo moaned. "Why do I suddenly have a bad feeling about this?"

"You are going to love this. Spook, my costumes, if you please!"

***

Twenty minutes later, Jo stood in a full leotard with tiger stripe designs. The look even came with a tail. She even had cat ears and painted on stripes and whiskers.

"This paint will come off, right?" Jo nervously asked Spook as he applied the last coat.

"Yeah, don't worry about. Just scrub hard enough," he grinned at her. Jo frowned. "Quit moving! You'll mess up the paint," Spook scolded her.

"Luke, I will never forgive you."

"Aw, come on! It's a brilliant idea!"

"No one else will get it, though!"

"So? We'll get it and we're all that matters."

"I guess. I must admit, this is pretty awesome," Jo sighed as she studied her new tiger face in the large dressing room mirror. The five of them were crowded into the small dressing room in the back of Spook's store. Luke had finished putting on his costume earlier. He just needed rags.

"Aw, Jo! You make such a cute tiger!" Scarlett gushed. She had her hands clasped together under her cheek, her head tilted to the side as she gazed at her friend's get up.

"Thanks, I think."

"At least you know that no one else will be dressed as you," Spook reassured her.

"Yeah, 'cause no one in their right mind would agree to go as a tiger and his boy."

"Hey, you're my tiger. I am not your boy."

"Did you even read the book?"

"I saw the movie," Luke defended himself.

"Then you know that the tiger basically owns Pi. You're my boy."

"Stop arguing! You're both adorable. I think it's a fantastic 'we're a couple but not actually a together couple' costume," Scarlett interjected. She smoothed a loose piece of Jo's hair. Her hair was pulled back into a long, sleek pony tail. Jo's costume was complete. She sighed, knowing she'd have to redo the entire thing that coming Friday.